1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to heaters for heating hair curlers. In particular, this invention relates to hairsetters for heating elongated flexible hair curlers.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Elongated flexible hair curlers have been known for quite some time. Such curlers generally comprise cylindrical bodies made of resilient material such as foam or sponge rubber and have a wire or soft metal core embedded within the body along the axis of the curler. An elongated flexible curler is much longer than an inflexible curler in order to enable it to be bent over on itself to retain a hair tress wound thereon. This avoids the necessity of a clip to hold the hair as is required with inflexible curlers. Elongated flexible curlers also may be bent in a variety of positions after hair is wound thereon and thus may impart a variety of waves to the hair. The metal core enables the curler to be bent and to retain the position it is placed in until it is bent into another position.
It is well known that heating hair that is wound upon hair curlers, curling irons, etc. will facilitate setting a curl in the hair, whether it is wet or dry. Devices used to heat hair curlers are generally called "hairsetters" and many such prior art devices are known for heating inflexible, rigid hair curlers. An example of such a hairsetter is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,029 showing a heating unit having a plurality of heating posts for receiving hair curlers thereon, each hair curler having a longitudinal base surrounded by a heat absorbing wax-filled container. However, no hairsetters are known that are suitable for heating elongated flexible hair curlers.
The known flexible curlers are generally not heated prior to use although heatable flexible curlers are shown in a copending commonly assigned application entitled Heatable Flexible Hair Curlers Ser. No. 671,157 filed Nov. 14, 1984. There is only one known prior art example of a heatable flexible hair curler. U.S. Pat. No. 2,074,816 shows an elongated flexible hair curler having an absorbent casing filled with a material such as calcium oxide which when moistened generates heat. The curler disclosed in this patent is incapable of generating heat in use with dry hair.
It ia an object of this invention to provide a hairsetter for elongated flexible curlers capable of heating a plurality of such curlers to a predetermined temperature.